African Savannah
by kdeg3
Summary: Tumblr roleplaying thread written from 7/7/12 - 10/27/12. Paragraphs by Kiara written by Tumblr user xlove-will-find-a-way.


This African savannah expedition was exhausting. Jim Dear and Darling had won a trip to see the African savannah, and although **Lady** had enjoyed it, it was very tiresome. The pups were cranky, days were long, and the scorching heat tired them all. She needed a break. The puppies were resting inside their hut in front of a fan, and Lady had been, too, but now that she was up, she decided to take a little walk through the savannah. Shortly after she left the hut, she saw a giant rock structure with many animals surrounding it.

**Kiara** had woken early that morning. Breathing lightly like Kovu had taught her to always do while hunting, she tiptoed past a sleeping Timon and Pumbaa and stood on the edge of Pride Rock, looking over the kingdom. Quite a few animals were already awake as she was, talking quietly amongst themselves. This made it even easier for her to climb down the rock unnoticed. She headed out into the savannah. No babysitters this time.

A few minutes into her trek through some long grass, Kiara's eyes caught something unfamiliar. A little brown… something. Nothing like any of the animals she'd ever seen in Pride Rock. Curious, she bounded forward. "Hi there!" she called in a friendly voice, hoping not to startle this much smaller creature.

**Lady** froze as a lion approached her. Although it wasn't growling and it didn't look angry, she knew to be very careful. "Please don't hurt me," she whispered as she leaned her head away. Lady knew lions were "kings of the jungle," and seeing that large rock with other animals surrounding it… She then realized that there must be more lions up on that rock.

And wait! Lady remembered something else about lions. Jim Dear had watched a lot of nature documentaries on the TV. Only the females went to hunt, and they brought back food for the males. Lady felt her heart drop to her stomach and she felt dizzy. She started hyperventilating, and soon she could hear herself breathing fast and hard and feel her heart pounding in her chest.

Well, this new animal certainly didn't look very threatening.** Kiara** was more than twice her size, after all. And her thoughts were further confirmed when the creature started gasping. Yup, Kiara had definitely startled her. "H-Hey! Relax! I'm not gonna hurt you. It's just…" she paused, then said, "My name's Kiara, what's yours? Where'd you come from? Who.. or.. what are you?" Hopefully this stranger wouldn't mind the questions. Zazu, or for all she knew her father, could spot her at any moment. It wasn't every day she could be off on her own and meet someone new.

**Lady** tried to relax herself, and in a few moments, she was able to get her breathing back to normal. Still tense, however, she said, "A-Are you s-sure?" Then, to answer Kiara's questions, she trembled, "I-I'm a dog, a cocker spaniel. M-My name's L-Lady, and I'm from N-New Haven but I'm here on a v-vacation with my owners and f-family. I'm v-very sorry if this is all your land. I-If it is, I-I'll leave right away!"

**Kiara** replied cheerfully, "Nice to meet you. New Haven… haven't heard of it; where's that?" Then again, she knew nothing of the worlds outside the Pridelands, save for the jungles, elephant graveyard, and so on. Kiara, who had been a bit oblivious to Lady's discomfort, snapped back to attention a second later when she mentioned leaving. "Oh, no, you don't need to leave!" She grinned. "It's not every day I get to meet someone like you around here." Looking over at Pride Rock, she sighed. "This isn't my land… not really. My father's the king here."

**Lady** decided to give Kiara a chance. She didn't sound threatening, and Lady didn't get any vibe that she was. Steadying her voice, she replied, "New Haven is in America. Connecticut, to be more specific." She slowly sat down. "Your father's the king? So you're… a princess?"

"Wow. So you're a long way from home." **Kiara** sat down, too, folding her paws and resting her head on them. "Yes, I guess I am a princess. I'm meant to be queen one day but… usually that's all everyone thinks I am." She shook her head. "That's why I can usually never go anywhere without an escort. I know my father means well, but it can get.. well… annoying," she added with a roll of her eyes.

"Yes," **Lady** nodded. "But my humans go on a lot of vacations, so I'm used to it by now." She shrugged. "I'm better now with leaving my house than I used to be." Listening to Kiara, Lady slightly cocked her head and asked, "So, you can't go _anywhere_?" She gave her a look down. "But you're almost a full adult!" This confused Lady. Jim Dear and Darling had always let Lady go out alone. Tramp went with her if she was going to be out long, or if he or she wanted. "Who's your father?" she asked, noticing another lion pacing on the large rock behind Kiara.

"Must be nice to be able to travel and see different places with your family." **Kiara** nodded at the mention of her being practically an adult. "I know.. Tell that to my father." She sighed. "It's not that I can't go anywhere… I can… Only it's usually with an escort of some sort." Though, she didn't mind if Kovu went with her anywhere. "My father's name is Simba. He's the one up there." She motioned with her head towards Pride Rock, where she could she the outline of her dad's golden fur and red mane looking out over the savannah.

"Simba!" **Lady** exclaimed as her big brown eyes widened. "Why, I met a lion named Simba before! In my town.. Only he was a cub.." She was confused. "Has it really been that long..?" she whispered almost to herself, in disbelief that the little cub she had met was now a grown lion with a grown daughter. It couldn't be the same one, but then again, how many lions with the name Simba could there be? "Have you done anything to make him not trust you?" she offered, although her mind was still focused on the mystery of this Simba.

"A cub?" **Kiara's** eyes widened slightly. "That's weird." She hadn't known her dad had ever traveled that far from the savannah. At Lady's question, she started to shake her head, then stopped after a moment of thought and gave a small grin. "Well… I was quite the mischievious cub.. I guess that hasn't changed much. A couple of trips outside kingdom borders…" she sighed. "But everyone tells me I was just like my father when he was young."

**Lady** smiled. "Well, that wouldn't be hard to believe." She then noticed another lion, who looked just like Kiara, join Simba on the rock, and together they looked out onto the Pride Lands. "Um, is that your mother?" Lady asked, nodding towards the rock.

**Kiara** looked towards Pride Rock and nodded. "The queen of the Pride Lands," she said. "Her and my father go way back. Best friends since they were cubs." She wondered if they'd noticed she was gone yet. _Please, please, please, don't send Timon and Pumbaa after me. Or worse.. Zazu… _"So, how are you and your family liking your trip here so far?" she asked Lady.

**Lady** giggled to herself. She smiled at the faint outline of lions on the rock, then looked back at Kiara. "It's going well. I think we're actually supposed to be traveling over there today," she nodded to the rock. "But so far, we haven't been in any trouble with any other animals besides a stampede of elephants, so that's good." She smiled briefly.

**Kiara** smiled. "Most of the animals around here are okay. Just stay away from this place called 'the elephant graveyard.'" Sure, there hadn't been as many hyenas spotted there as there once was. And maybe she didn't mind adventuring there herself, but she found that she liked Lady quite a bit and didn't want to see her or her family get into any sort of danger. "Wonder what they'll think when you tell them you met a lion," she grinned.

"An elephant graveyard?" **Lady** questioned as a shiver ran down her spine. "Yes, I.. don't think I'll be going there any time soon." Her face turned into a puzzled expression. "Why? Do they not like lions?" she asked curiously.

"Yeah.. not a great idea."** Kiara** had visited the place more times than she'd ever admit, to her father, especially, but it was no place for a newcomer to the Pridelands. "I don't know, do they? Usually when unfamiliar people meet me for the first time they run in the other direction," she smiled sheepishly.

"Well, that's because you're a lion," **Lady** giggled. "And everyone thinks lions will hurt or eat anyone or anything," she said as she saw Simba descend from the rock.

"Antelope or zebra, sure… but humans and such? They don't look very tasty to me anyway," **Kiara** said with a grin. If anything, she was more curious to learn more about them, not eat them. The few that she'd met certainly didn't seem very dangerous. She watched with Lady as her father descended Pride Rock. "Wonder what kingly duties he has to do today…" she muttered.

**Lady** glanced at Kiara as they watched Simba, who began to pick up speed as he headed away from the rock, and seemingly towards the pair. Starting to get nervous, Lady stammered, "Uh, Kiara?" She slowly took a few steps behind her.

**Kiara** groaned in frustration. He was headed straight for them! Had he really spotted them already? Not wanting to face another lecture, she turned to Lady. "Run!" she whispered, already back on her feet.

A panicked **Lady** turned and bolted towards the trees, not wanting to face an angry male lion, even if she had met him before. She scampered into a large tree, hiding between its branches, but she thought Simba still saw her.

**Kiara** ducked down into a patch of long grass, a few feet away from Lady, and mouthed to her to be quiet. No doubt her father had at least gotten a glimpse of them. He was a hundred times the hunter she was, and stood looking around the spot where they had been talking. She focused on keeping her breathing normal, not moving an inch.

**Lady** slowly and carefully nodded to show Kiara she understood. Staring right at Simba, she felt her body shake when she saw just how big he was. If he saw her as a threat... She gulped, the shaking in her body increasing. She didn't even realize she was holding her breath.

Simba seemed to be looking around their spot for several minutes, but for **Kiara** it felt like hours. When he finally started off in another direction, Kiara waited until he was far enough away, then jumped out of her hiding spot. "This way!" she motioned to Lady with her head towards the watering hole. They had to move.

**Lady** followed after Kiara without hesitation, not daring to look back to see if Simba noticed them. She heard a branch crack under her feet and prayed that Simba hadn't heard them.

"Phew!" **Kiara** skidded to a stop a minute later. "That was a close one, huh," she said with a grin. Her father was nowhere to be seen and she hoped it stayed that way. She stood at the edge of the watering hole and bent to take a refreshing drink.

**Lady** stopped running and tried to catch her breath, panting heavily and feeling all her weight on her legs. Noticing the water hole, she graciously took a long drink of water and replied, "Yes, who knows how angry he is, though." She shuddered, hoping Kiara wouldn't be in a lot of trouble for this.

**Kiara** shrugged. "I wouln't worry about it. My father's always been a bit too overprotective, if you ask me." Surely he wouldn't mind this particular outing. It wasn't like she was causing any trouble. And there was always the chance that he hadn't seen them at all or mistaken them for other animals, though she doubted it.

"I see," **Lady** said, thinking about Tramp with the girls in the future. He would probably be the same way, which assured Lady, in a way. Looking around at the new environment, Lady asked, "So, where are we now?" Africa seemed to be filled with lots of different, beautiful scenery.

"Well, this is the watering hole, perfect for a day like this." **Kiara** motioned with her head off into the distance. "There's a jungle over that way, the elephant graveyard is to the east, and…" she grinned, looking toward the outskirts of the Pride Lands. "Last but not least, the Outlands." The kingdom was huge, filled with things to explore that fascinated her both as a cub and now.

"Wow," **Lady** said in amazement, imagining all the different things - and animals - that probably lurked in each location. She was curious, yet apprehensive about it. "So, your father owns all of it? My, that is a lot of land." Lady was just beginning to realize how big this African savannah was.

"Yeah, even I haven't explored every single place yet. You always seem to find something new." From what **Kiara** had heard about her uncle Scar, her father had gone through a lot to bring back the Pride Lands to the beautiful place it was today. "And one day this'll all be mine," she added quietly, still unsure of how she felt about being queen.

"That must come with a lot of responsibility," **Lady** began, but then paused. Kiara must have heard this talk plenty of times, and she was sure she had no interest in hearing it anymore.

**Kiara** sighed, "Yeah, I guess so." Just then, she heard a voice. A human voice. She looked over at Lady. "Do you hear that, too? I think it's a human." She stood from the watering hole and took a step back. "I.. I think I should go."

**Lady** heard the sound as well, immediately recognizing it as Jim Dear's voice calling for her. "Yes, that's my owner. I'll meet up with you soon, okay? It was wonderful to meet you!" As Kiara headed in the opposite direction, Lady ran towards Jim Dear, not wanting Jim Dear to catch sight of the lioness. Before they finished their expedition, Lady definitely wanted to see Kiara again. She had a feeling there was a lot more to know about the Pride Lands.


End file.
